Iowa Man Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing a Firearm

A man who illegally possessed a firearm pled guilty on December 19, 2022, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Lavell Andre Barnes, Jr., age 27, from Iowa City, Iowa, was convicted of possession of a firearm by a felon.

At the plea hearing, Barnes admitted that he illegally possessed a firearm after being previously convicted of two felony convictions in Cook County, Illinois.  Barnes was previously convicted of a controlled substance offense involving heroin and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Barnes remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Barnes faces a possible maximum sentence of not more than 10 years’ imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a fine of not more than $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason Dorval Norwood and was investigated by the Iowa City Police Department’s Street Crimes Action Team.  Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 22-CR-84.

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